Hi! I'm Erik.

Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro hands-on review

Good things come in small packages

After Apple showed everyone that big touchscreens are cool and the way of the future, it seems that the phone makers are doing their best to follow. Not necessarily a bad thing, but don't some of us sometimes prefer tactile buttons instead of a flat surface? And can't a phone be high-end without having a 4" screen?

Looking for something more portable but just as usable, the Sony Ericsson X10 Mini Pro caught my eye. The handset is much smaller than the average smartphone and packs a full keyboard. It also comes with the Android 1.6 operating system.

Getting Linux on that Dingoo

Dingoo + Linux = Dingux

In a previous post, I mentioned that installing a version of Linux (called Dingux) on the portable gaming console Dingoo A320 was possible. Well, I finally got around to do it - and I don't regret it. Installation was fairly easy, and a lot of applications and games can now be used on the unit. Even Quake works!

Windows7 Backup Error Code 0x810000FF

From the Helpful Error Codes-dept.

I am using Windows 7 at the time, and it's set up to backup some "important" files to an external hard drive on a regular basis. The other day, Windows kept telling me that the backup failed, giving the helpful error code 0x810000FF. Google did not provide any real help on this. I did notice, however, that I was low on disk space on one of my partitions included in the backup (not the target drive, nor the system partition). Freeing up a couple of GBs did the trick. So maybe the error code should be "insufficient disk space" or something. But then again, hex looks cooler.

Homer Simpson Bao Song

Filling in the blanks

Homer Simpson sings a song about his favourite "baos" (steamed buns) in episode 12, season 21. The episode is called "Boy Meets Curl" and he sings the song at around 11:30.

So what was that about? Well, I was googling this the other day but couldn't find anything. After having to look for it "manually", I thought, hey, let's make the Internet a bit better by filling in the missing pieces. Hope I saved someone some time. ;)

Super Mario Crossover

Mixing old and old

This flash game is definitely something for all you NES fans out there: Super Mario Bros. Crossover. Basically, it's the first Super Mario Bros game, except you can play with a selection classic of characters other than Mario; Link, for example, or Megaman. If you haven't tried it yet, better do it before they pull it due to copyright infringement.

On a side note, I'm also enjoying Canabalt now. Make sure to crank up the volume!

RSS Feed added

No, not "Repetitive Stress Syndrome"

I just found the time to implement an RSS feed function. Not really a big thing - i guess that's why it's called Really Simple Syndication. ;)

And by the way, it is now possible to include your web site URL when posting comments or guestbook entries.

Gimp image editing

A story about gimps and goats

Gimp is a free image editing software that is very heavy on features. I like it a lot and use frequently for photo editing. But getting started can be a bit tough and takes some patience. I was experimenting with a picture the other day and thought I could share the results as a little tutorial.

Comments enabled

Just a few years too late

I decided to implement a commenting function. On the server side, it works kind of like the guestbook (using PHP and XML), but with entries tied to a specific article. For the user (i.e. you), it works just like the plain vanilla commenting function you know from other blogs. Feel free to comment on any article, including this one.

Canon Image Stabilizer (IS) test

Shaken, not blurred

Many lenses today come with optical image stabilizers (in Canon's case, IS for short) to help producing sharp pictures when shooting in low-light conditions. Useful when a tripod is not an option. However, lenses with IS are typically more expensive than their non-IS counterparts. So how much does IS help, and is it worth the extra $$$?

Save a bundle using old camera lenses

Cheapskate photography

I got a Canon 1000D some time ago, but I still use the kit lens. Simple reason is, good lenses are quite expensive. Luckily, there is a solution, and it's called M42. Using an adapter, old lenses using the M42 mount can be fitted onto almost any modern SLR. I decided to get an adapter, and shortly after, I got some lenses from a friend so I could try it out. If you like to save some money and don't mind working in (almost) full manual mode, this is something for you.